Synopses & Reviews
Tidrick explores the origins of the idea of imperial rule and the effect that it had on the character of the English ruling classes. She studies the lives of individuals considered exemplary by the English public of the day, paying particular attention to how they coped with moral dilemmas. Charting the rise of the imperial ethos, she shows how it was thought important to instil a sense of obedience in the colonized based not merely on duty but on love. She argues that the result was a combination of hypocrisy and racism.
Review
“So well written, so full of characterization and incident, so funny and sometimes so delightfully acid, that one can read it more or less like a novel.” --The Spectator
“This remarkable book is a reminder of something we prefer to forget.. It is written with intelligence and wit.. Intense comedy and excruciating pathos go together.” --The Independent
“Fascinating, entertaining, stimulating.” --Financial Times
“Told with panache and humour.” --Evening Standard
“An admirable study . . . rich and incessantly intelligent.” --London Review of Books
“Kathryn Tidrick attempts to resolve some of the paradoxes of British imperial rule.. Well written with many stimulating insights.” --The Journal of Imperial and Commonwealth History
“Provocative in every sense of the term.. a delightful work.” --The International History Review
“A fascinating work, written with panache and style, highlighting many of the key questions that still surround the record of the British and their Empire.” --African Affairs
Synopsis
Kathryn Tidrick's highly acclaimed book explores the origins of the ideal of British imperial rule and the effect it had on the character of the English ruling classes. From the Lawrence brothers of the Punjab, Rajah James Brooke of Sarawak and Mountbatten to Frederick Courtenay Selous, Elspeth Huxley and Cecil Rhodes, Tidrick illuminates some of the extraordinary lives and actions of the people that formed and governed the British Empire, from India to Africa and beyond.
About the Author
Kathryn Tidrick is the author of Heart-Beguiling Araby: The English Romance with Arabia and Gandhi: A Political and Spiritual Life, both published by I.B.Tauris. She was born and grew up in Britain and has a Ph.D. in psychology from London University. She has lived in the United States, Jamaica, Tanzania, Kenya, South Africa and India, and now makes Scotland her home.
Table of Contents
Acknowledgements * Preface * Introduction * Nicholson to Peshawar, Gordon to Khartoum: the Punjab Creed and its Disciples * Frederick Courtenay Selous, Adventurer * Hugh Clifford, Administrator * Kenya: White Mans Country * The Masai and their Masters * The Meaning of Indirect Rule * The End of Empire * Epilogue: Grand Illusions, 1900-1940 * Notes * Bibliography * Index